Venezuela’s Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello said late on Wednesday that as many as 100 people were killed during the US military operation that led to the removal of President Nicolás Maduro from power on Saturday. This marks the first time Venezuelan authorities have provided an overall death toll for the incident, which has sparked intense political and diplomatic fallout both domestically and internationally.
Until now, Caracas had not released an official figure for those killed in the raid. The Venezuelan armed forces had earlier published a list naming 23 soldiers who died during the operation. Government officials have maintained that a significant portion of Maduro’s security detail was killed “in cold blood” during the assault. Adding to the gravity of the situation, Cuba has stated that 32 members of its military and intelligence services stationed in Venezuela were also killed in the attack.
Cabello further claimed that Maduro himself was injured during the raid, saying the ousted president suffered an injury to his leg while being detained by US forces. He also said that Maduro’s wife, Cilia Flores, who was taken into custody alongside him, sustained a head injury in the course of the operation. These details were presented as evidence of what Venezuelan officials describe as the violent nature of the intervention.
Meanwhile, Venezuela’s interim President Delcy Rodríguez, whom Cabello praised on his weekly state television programme as “courageous,” has sought to publicly honour those who died. On Tuesday, Rodríguez declared a week of national mourning for members of the Venezuelan military who were killed during the raid, signalling the government’s intent to frame the incident as a national tragedy and an act of aggression against the country’s armed forces.
